Tobacco Smoking Prevalence Among Homeless Youth Using Gender, Race/Ethnicity, and Parental Communication as Variable

The purpose of this study was determine if there were significant differences in tobacco smoking prevalence among homeless youth using gender, race/ethnicity, and parental communication as variables. This study utilized secondary data from the 2016 Illinois Youth Survey. A convenience sample of data (n=11,735) was used to increase the sample size of youth in alternative living situations (ALSs). The Pearson Chi-square Test with Yates Correction Factor was used to test for significance among the variables of gender, race/ethnicity, and parental communication.;The study found a statistically significant difference in smoking prevalence between youth and their living situations, youth residing in ALSs and grade level, and youth residing in ALSs and race/ethnicity. However, the study found no statistically significant differences in smoking prevalence between youth residing in ALSs and gender and youth residing in ALSs and parental (adult guardian) communication. These results suggest that youth in ALSs have higher smoking prevalence rates and that grade level and race/ethnicity may also be a factor. However, the study had several limitations which must be taken into consideration prior to making generalizations.